2009 was a great year for new music. Many of the acts on this list debuted this year, or at least saw their first full length album in 2009. Genres accepted by the indie rock mafia continued to expand: discoelectronica, hip-hop inspired autotune, hazy guitars, ambient rock, 80's nostalgia, SanFran Lo-Fi, and new percussion all reigned supreme. Above all else was the rise of the remix. Obscure and popular, if your single wasn't remixed by at least 4 people, it sucked. While most of these remixes were synthy crap, a few were mindblowing and have been complied in my top 2009 remixes list. I'll be posting the top singles list in groups of 10 over the next few days so check back to see what makes the grade. At the end of the list there will be a .zip with all the songs in it.
An overall fantastic album, no true singles stuck out from Matt & Kim's freshman attempt 'Grand'. A throwback to the guy and gal, female drumming White Stripes, Matt swaps out a guitar for a keyboard. They production is endearingly cheap and the vocals perfectly unpolished. Its the epitome of a summer romp through Brooklyn. Download it right away if you don't already got it.
Repentant former Britney Spears song writer and producer Andrew Wyatt has secretly been behind upwards of 5 of the most famous hits of the 'oughts (read: 2000's). Today he's making up for his sins by joining fellow Sweedes in the formation of Miike Snow. Half electronic, half pop genius, this song is infectious but not sickening. You can listen to it on loop and still love it. Another great summer anthem. Oh and you have to love crytozooagraphical album covers.
#18 11th Dimension - Julien CasablancasIts a sad when you have to introduce a Strokes song without the Strokes. Maybe the success of this track speaks to the superfluous nature of his backing band or how Julien hasn't really grown out of the Strokes mindset. Its everything you could want and expect. The most interesting bass line? Glossy rifts? Garage rocking beats? Yep. Thrown in a little synth and more distortion of the mic and you have yourself a 2009 hit.
#17 Deadbeat Summer - Neon Indian
Another big song of the summer. Neon Indian is still sort of an enigma to me; I know very little about the history and even took about 5 months to find the full album this song was on. This song exemplifies so well the new genre Neon India has forged ahead with. Everything is shiny and homespun, effortless and somehow sunkissed. Glowing rich yet lo-fi.... Glo-Fi I'll call it.
#16 
Summertime Clothes- Animal Collective
No list, regardless of who's writing it has left this song off. Animal Collective is only one a few acts to get multiple singles on the list. Between them and Animal collective, we've seen a growing swell of luxurious, noise rock. More melodies, instruments, and layers than is comprehendible, this song wraps you in a sonic cocoon.
#15 Cosmic Love - Florence + The Machine
Calling it write now, best new singer of 2009 is Florence. Its like Darwin himself gave us the magnificent voice of this girl here Florence. She plays the harp, sings like a freight train, and can write some really powerful yet catchy songs. In the same vein as Santigold last year, her album is chock full of poppy, indie, hard rock, grunge-y, and a surprisingly large amount of tympani. If this song doesn't do it for you (then you're not alive) then something else off the album definitely will.
Secretly I'm hoping this band's name is some reference to chromosome set but as there is only one girl and a bunch of girls, i'm not holding out that much hope. Maybe its just that they dropped their album so close to 2010, but I think they are in the running for best act of 2009. Some 20-somethings that all met in school (the same uni that birthed Hot Chip and Portishead) they've already garnered a mature, modern, somehow chic-rockabilly mixed with Cure level creepy sound. Everything is smooth, crisp and spot on. Not an extraneous word or beat. The back and forth of male and female vocals builds on the great precedent of the Kills and Raveonettes.
Probably the most online hype (mainly fueled by hypemachine and the blogosphere in general) a band has EVER seen before an actual release, Passion Pit spun hit after hit without actually releasing an album until well into summer. Hands down my favorite band at Bonnaroo, I was exhausted and had fallen asleep standing up during chairlift right before. Regardless of the large amount of toxic glow slime some acid-tripping midget spilled on me (and in dana's eye) right before, Passion Pit still managed to put me in a great mood. The sparkly harmony, insane falsetto, and punishing drums make this track just fantastic. The people making new palm commercials seem to agree. Hopefully the commercialization doesn't spark some indie-mafia anger.
#12 Heads Will Roll - Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Who would have thought that another brooklyn garage act of 2003 would become queen of alt rock let alone still be reigning through 2009? The YYY's effort was a little more synthed up but had darker melodies to counter the club ready tracks. Karen O is a top performer (as MEGasaurus rex says 'shes a boss-bitch'). Another act with a stunning Bonnarroo performance, this track captures the raw power Karen O commands.
#11 My Night with the Prostitute from Marseille - Beirut/Realpeople
It kinda pained me I couldn't break this into the top 10 but that doesn't diminish my absolute love for Beirut. That voice! Nothing can compete! So this one actually comes from Zach Condon's side project Realpeople. It's a more electronic group that is still very Beirut. Much like the Postal Service is to Death Cab. Its a great new direction and the EP leaves me looking very forward to 2010.
There you are, numbers 20-11! Right click save as for the ones you don't have. Check back tomorrow for the last 10!